Cooking For Engineers

[Razak]

When baking dinner rolls, how much does one need to knead the dough for it to be "right". I'm looking for a very light and fluffy texture to the final bread that comes apart easily. There is already butter in the recipe as well. I'm pretty new to bread baking and I'm eagerly awaiting my copy of Bread: A Bakers Book of Techniques and Recipes. Any tips would be great

[Dilbert]

Hi Razak -

bread baking is easy - it does take a little practice to 'recognize' how dough(s) handle and feel.

kneading develops gluten which is th elastic that makes the "balloons" that contain the "air bubbles in bread". how much is required does vary from bread to bread so you should follow the directions of the recipe.

stuff like "knead until smooth and elastic" - well, you may not recognize that 'condition' first time you make bread - so don't get discouraged if it all does not work out 'perfect' the first try.

keep in mind that baking ingredients are more science than art - if you are making a stew, a little more of this or that probably won't have much overall effect. this is not true with baking - take care with measuring - I recommend you get a scale and go by weight more than volume. easier to be consistent . . .